Study: Women Still Facing Pay Gap

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April 24, 2007 -- Despite achieving higher GPAs in school, women are still making less money than their male co-workers after graduating, new research shows.

In their first year out of college, women on average earn only about 80 percent of what men earn in the same field, according to the American Association of University Women Educational Foundation. The study also found that after 10 years in the workforce, the gap widens, with women earning only 70 percent of what men earn.

Despite controlling for hours, occupation, parenthood, and other factors that might affect earnings, at least a quarter of that pay gap remains unexplained, researchers said. Researchers believe this gap is likely due to sex discrimination.

Catherine Hill, the group's research director, said educational achievement alone is unlikely to close the pay gap. "We need to make workplaces more family-friendly, reduce sex segregation in education and in the workplace, and combat discrimination that continues to hold women back in the workplace," Hill said in a statement.